Festivity
by a blue fruit cup
Summary: What had started as a normal day led to an event. What had started as attending said event led to her to meeting one very confusing boy. AU
1. History Lesson

**AN: This is set in an AU where spirits co-exist with humans; it was supposed to be a one-shot but as it turns out this story has become far too long to be a one-shot. I decided to turn it into a story with 3-5 chapters instead. I won't say anything else, but I hope you enjoy it! :)**

For what it's worth, I've always been great at hiding.

The _Forest of Tobiume _is known for it's large trees, covered in a thicket of low-lying foliage and a canopy of leaves that fall and regrow every other night. The branches are clustered and tend to spiral up and around the trunk, allowing any human who has the endurance and patience to climb up. The distance between each of the trees is surprisingly small (the roots of the trees tend to overlap and leave the ground a disgruntled mess) and if you have the courage to _leap _then it's easy to navigate and hide throughout the forest.

Because of this, not only is the game _hide-and-seek _ideal to play with your friends, but also with your spirit as you run around jumping and scrambling to-and-fro in a desperate attempt to out-smart them. It's fun, good exercise really, but at one point you hear your guardian squawking and you realize that you have to stop before they get _really _mad...

No fun.

My hand catches unto one of the branches and I use my momentum to duck behind a trunk. The bark is rough on my fingers but I lay there for a moment, listening to my spirit go on and on about how _'this isn't a good time'_ while I pant and try not to breathe too heavily.

I'll come out soon, for sure. I don't want to make Tobiume _too _irritable but at the same time I can't help but feel a small rush of adrenaline.

Hide-and-seek in this forest is _thrilling_.

The sun kisses my nose and I grin. The minutes pass and I can no longer hear my spirit, who's likely returned to our tree by now. With a smile of victory I let go of the trunk and try to jump to another branch when-

_SCREECH! _

I yelp and lose my footing immediately. The air rushes against my head for a moment before something long, and feathery wraps around my waist, and pulls me upright. I squint, scold myself internally for not hiding in a better spot, and turn my gold eyes to the bird whose tail saved me.

"Tobiume," I try not to look so defeated, "you found me. Heh..."

My spirit looks furious. "Do you have any idea how long it took me to find you?" I feel relieved upon hearing the tone of her voice. She isn't angry. She's worried.

I move to Tobiume's side and wrap my arms around her body. "I'm sorry. I just wanted to play a bit and... I got carried away...!" She sighs in response, but doesn't move.

"It's fine. You're still a child, these things happen." Tobiume says. The bird nuzzles me with her beak, gently.

She uses her tail to lift me up, more than strong enough to do so. I end up sitting on her back while the bird turns and begins to navigate her way back toward our tree. Along the way, I clamp tightly unto my spirit and smile into her feathers.

Tobiume is very large, and soft. The spirit of the Flying Plum Tree is endowed with thick purple feathers. You can see them darker on her back, but they gradually lighten over her torso, wings, and neck until it's no longer purple but white. Her white chest feathers are a bit thinner, and she has a set of matching crests along the ridges near her eyes. These are delicately shaped, and remind me of her wings: soft, long, but at the same time fierce and beautiful. I smile at the thought; Tobiume has the best, nicest wings of any bird spirit I've seen (even if I _am _a whee bit biased, it's still true!).

My favorite part about her is her tail. It's strange, and it reminds me of a long, slender lizard's tail, but instead of the scales there are _feathers. _It'scovered in deep purple-red crests at the end. It's certainly the most sturdy part of her and tends to slink behind her like a crocodile's tail when she's in flight.

I can't help but bury myself in the softness of her feathers. My eyelids grow heavy and I don't resist shutting them for a few minutes of rest.

When I wake up, it's from the cries of other spirits down below. The trees are high but the loud noises make me frown and nearly roll off of Tobiume's back. I feel her tail grab hold of me immediately and set me down next to her on a branch.

"...Thanks, Tobi." I whisper gratefully.

My bird tilts her head. She leans down and rubs my head once more before turning back to look out from our tree.

Our tree, in this huge forest, is one of the few that stops near a trail on the root-ridden ground below, and as such it has quite a bit of space between it and the rest of the forest. It's covered in thick, brown bark, with elegant yet drooping green leaves and blossoming white flowers to accompany it. I'm rather fond of it myself but there are times I regret it being out near the road - and this would be one of those times.

There's a whole parade of spirits below. I scrunch my brow and nose in confusion; my eyes gleam gold as they sweep out and take in the number of them. It's endless, streaming, and in a sense it reminds me of a roaring river full of migrating salmon.

I frown as I realize it isn't _just _a procession of spirits - but humans, too! The 'Guardians', as spirits more formally refer to them, are traveling alongside their respective spirit and making quite the crowd.

Strange. Why are there humans out with the spirits? There isn't this kind of crazy traffic in the forest unless a special event is going on.

I gasp and feel Tobiume's tail wrap around my waist again, yanking me back from the edge. With a frown I turn my head towards her. "I won't fall, promise," I plead, "you can let go. I just want to look."

Tobiume hesitates. Then her tail releases me and falls back over the branch. I watch it, and her, before my attention shifts back unto the parade below. The line of spirits stretches as far as my eyes can see. Large, small, fat, thin, tiny, _huge_, the list goes on and on to the point where I can't even count and my head starts to hurt.

Before I decide to look away, though, I catch a glint of something below. A cat, with ash-gray fur and a gait that declares it's zip and pride, walks confidently near one side of the crowd. Next to it, slithering at a comfortable pace, is a snake easily ten-feet long, with white scales and gray markings in the shape of 'notches' along it's back. My eyes light up when I see the two guardians of these spirits.

"Matsumoto! Ichimaru!" I shout to the crowd below. A few spirits look up but I'm too busy waving like an over-eager child to notice. "Guys! Hey!" I can see both of them turn to look.

Matsumoto gives me a wave, and shouts, "Hinamori! Come and join us!"

My purple song-bird gives a low cry to get my attention. I turn and look at her with a huge smile, "Tobi! Can I go down and see Matsumoto and Ichimaru? Haineko is there, and so is Shinso-! So, I'll be safe!" My eyes must be huge from the look I'm giving her.

After a moment Tobiume sighs. She mumbles something about '_not being able to say no to that face'_ and places me on her back using her tail.

I wrap my arms around her. With all the grace and dignity of a Noble, Tobiume leaps off from her perch and the air soars through my hair. A few of the black strands get caught in my face, but I ignore them until my spirit has landed safely on the ground below.

Ichimaru and Matsumoto have moved a little ahead. I whisper another thanks to Tobiume before slipping off her back. There's no time to waste as my feet carry themselves (and me) to the crowd, diving and ducking to get where I see my friends.

They look fit, calm, and happy. Matsumoto Rangiku is a stunning human with ginger hair that curls and falls down to her shoulders, and the most amazing gray eyes. Gin Ichimaru, on the other hand, is the kind of human you'd expect to make your hair stand on end. He's got these narrow blue eyes, shaggy silver hair, and pasty white skin, with the most obscure and jaw-dropping grin you could ever come across. Somehow his lips find a way to stretch out a smile and make him look like a fox.

Or a snake.

(Maybe both.)

Both of them are easily a year older, at fifteen, and wear the same clothes all of us guardians do: a set of white robes, one piece for the upper and lower halves of our body, and a thin black sash to keep it secured.

"Hinamori!" Rangiku yells as I embrace her in a hug. She and Ichimaru stop for me, while their respective spirits halt a few feet ahead.

I look up and meet my friend's beaming smile. She's rather happy today. "You two look well," I comment, "Has Haineko been gentle on you, Matsumoto?"

Rangiku nods, and grins, "I haven't gotten into trouble in four days; she's never been happier."

"Ne, ne, that's a record fer ya." I hear Ichimaru comment from the side, and while his accent puts most others off, both Rangiku and I find it endearing. It's strange to think how comfortable we are with each other.

Rangiku turns and ignores him, looking at me instead, "Is Tobiume meeting you later?"

"Yeah. She said I could stay with you guys." I nod.

"Sounds like fun, Hina, Ran-han an' I were jus' on the way to the water'ng hole." Gin's words make me pause.

"Why is everyone going to the watering hole? I didn't know there was a special event today." I run a hand through my hair absentmindedly. After catching a tangle, I stop and wrestle with it. "Is something important happening?"

The ginger near me chuckles. "You should pay more attention, Hinamori. Lord Hyourinmaru of the Heavenly Skies is visiting the spirits today. It's such a big event that even the water and ice spirits from the Rushing Waters up north have come down to see!"

My lips turn into a frown. "Hy-yo-in-marr-you?" I pronounce the name slowly. It sounds vaguely familiar but I can't figure out where it's from.

"Ya don' know him?" Ichimaru inquires.

I groan. "That name is familiar but... but I don't remember it. I don't think Tobiume's ever mentioned it before, at least not lately."

"Yer spirit is very confus'ng, Hinamori. Ya should be taugh' 'bout the great spirits, especially consider'ng..." My gold eyes lock unto Ichimaru's blue ones. He shuts up.

For a moment, though, his eyes glint with mischief.

Without warning Ichimaru reaches over and pulls Rangiku to him. He wraps an arm around her and rests it on her shoulder. "We can teach ya, Hinamori! Ran an' I know what's up an' down 'bout this!" The boy declares.

"G-Gin! Off!" Matsumoto turns three shades darker and looks to the side.

"Aa, sorry, Ran, I didn' mean to upset ya, won' do it again," Ichimaru releases her with the most heart-felt, sincere apology I've ever heard come from his lips. Abruptly, his gaze shifts to me. "But what ya say? Wan' to hear 'bout the great Hyourinmaru? Lord of the Heavenly Skies?"

"If you have time, Ichimaru, I don't want to be confused at this event, when this... Hi-err-rin-are-oo spirit shows up." I say.

"Hyourinmaru, Hinamori," Rangiku interrupts to smile and say a few words, "_Lord_ Hyourinmaru. The spirits here, especially those of water and ice, will be very finicky about how you address him. You have to be formal."

"Formal? I have to remember all of the name? I'm not good at that!"

"Ne, ya will be fine once ya start sayin' it a lot," Ichimaru cuts in. "Jus' have to ge' used to i', Hinamori."

"Hee-yo-rin-mare-you..." I mumble.

Ichimaru and Matsumoto chuckle. With a stubborn streak my arms cross, and I pout at them, "Don't make fun of me! It's not my fault the name is reaaaaally confusing... and long...!"

"Not making fun, Hinamori, promise!" Rangiku assures me.

Somehow, by the amused look she's giving me, I can't find it in my heart to believe her.

"You two are lucky I love you both so much..." I grumble.

Matsumoto wastes no time switching the subject, "Why don't we tell you about Lord Hyourinmaru now?" She jabs Ichimaru in the side.

He jumps, and reaches up to scratch the back of his head, "Ne, since Ran-han here decided to volun'eer me for the job... Guess I'll begin for ya..."

Ichimaru begins by diving into the age-old tale of how our world was formed. Earth, as it's called, was created by the Spirits of Origin: Time, and Space. I try not to drone out too much while he goes over how they created the Heavens and the Earth, and made the the leaders, the Nobles of the Elements, out of the things around them.

The spirits of the Winds - Orthwin, Lord of the North, Astwin, Lord of the East, Outhwin, Lord of the South, and Estwin, Lady of the West - were created first. Ichimaru describes their creation in vivid detail, and while I want to get to the part about Hyourinmaru right away I can't help but listen as he avidly tells how each one was different, yet similar. After the Winds come the Nobles of the other Elements - Water, Fire, Light, Shadow, Ice, Air, Earth, Skies - and many others, too many for any ordinary guardian to remember. But Ichimaru throws himself into this story, you can tell he is clearly passionate about his ability to speak, and by the time he's gone over discussing how the Nobles were made the other spirits around us have grown quiet to listen.

The silver-haired boy only pauses to breathe, before continuing. "...that is where we go' where we are today, Hina, with all of these spirit creatin' the world an'..." Ichimaru spends a good five minutes telling the tale of how the Origin spirits made 'Guardians,' or humans who were meant to balance out each individual spirit and keep said spirit in line.

At one point Ichimaru finishes with the history lesson and grins. "...now abou' Lord Hyourinmaru."

The entire section of the spirit parade around us is silent. There's a few of the younger guardians whining or complaining about the walking, and their stomachs, but everything is otherwise quiet.

"Lo' of the guardians claim he was creat'd by Lady Es'win, of the Wes' Wind, to spite Lord Orthwi' after he an' her go' into a nasty figh'." Ichimaru's suspenseful voice leaves the rest of us hanging unto his last word, begging for more without ever saying a thing. "Funny, too, given tha' Lady Es'win is associate' with the Earth more than the Sky, but tha' where they say Lord Hyourinmaru comes from. A spiri' who fell from the frozen Heavens... Said to wander aroun' the skies of the earth by 'imself. He's real powerful, ya hear? Controls the winter an' the frost almos' as well as the spirit of the North Win' does-" Ichimaru is jabbed in the gut again, by Rangiku.

The ginger's eyes are shining so brightly I could've sworn her spirit was of fire, or light.

"But he's never come to this region before, Hinamori! They say that he's finally been given a guardian, and that he's coming HERE to reveal him! Can you imagine how excited everyone is? We haven't had a visit from a real Noble in eons!" Rangiku ends her ramble with a wide grin.

I frown and look away. "Oh."

The others who live in this forest (_especially _guardians) tend to forget that Lady Tobiume _is _a Noble, a powerful earth spirit who is the reason this forest has flourished and grown. I can understand part of why they would, given that she's a very low-ranking noble, but it's times like these that I feel a little pang inside my heart when others don't acknowledge her.

Rangiku spies the look on my face after a moment and she gasps. "I-I'm sorry, Hinamori, I forgot, and..."

She's genuinely remorseful.

"It's fine." My lips are pulled upwards into a thin smile.

No point in holding such a small thing over her and ruining the day.

"Are you two excited?" My voice lightens as I look from Ichimaru to Rangiku. It's a bit louder now that Ichimaru's tale has ended, and spirits are chattering among themselves and their guardians. I raise my voice to compensate. "Are you two excited to see Lord Hyourinmaru's guardian?"

Ichimaru smiles pleasantly, "Ya go' it, Hina. Ran-han an' I are gonna be standin' together!"

"Although it's probably going to be packed, since so many spirits are expected to come... I hope I don't have trouble seeing, it would be awful to get there and wait for it to start and not be able to tell what's going on!" Rangiku exclaims. She's got a worried look on her face.

I look back over at Ichimaru and for a moment I see his pause, and his smile disappear. His lips purse and his eyes open a little more to stare at Rangiku, no doubt an endless stream of thoughts swirling around behind them.

"If tha' happens ya can sit on my shoulders, Ran-han." Gin's voice is sincere.

It's a strange sort of sincere, not the kind of sincere tone he uses with me. It's sweeter, more eager, and it makes Rangiku's face turn red (again). But then Gin is smirking and grinning with that fox-snake smile of his, and Matsumoto is elbowing him in the side and exclaiming in a _very _flustered tone that she'll be fine and doesn't need his help.

I can't resist smiling at the two. They're a perfect match, balancing the other out in energy and maturity.

Without warning the spirits in front of me halt and I slam into the back of one, a particularly large and unruly brown bear. After muttering several apologies, I feel myself being hauled up by Rangiku and Ichimaru. They drag me a bit back, and I glance around to see that everyone has come to a halt.

"What's going on?" I poke Rangiku in the side. "Why are we stopped?"

"We're here, where the event is going to take place." The ginger girl answers.

I stand on tiptoe and my eyes grow wide at the sight before me. "We've arrived at the Great Watering Hole..."


	2. The Great Watering Hole

**AN: Sorry for the wait on this! I meant to get it up yesterday but I was way too tired. :p****  
**

It's evening when we arrive at the Great Watering Hole. I can't help but let my eyes skip across the sky and admire the long, puffy trails of red, gold, and violet that extend from the horizon.

I stop and take a look around. This area is usually a plateau, clear and leveled. The forest begins a few hundred yards out around it, and a large spring settles in the center. It's no surprise that the area is packed; spirits fill the landscape and are beginning to cram and push against one another in order to fit. It's so crowded that a few of the trees closer to the watering hole have spirits finding refuge on their branches**. **Despite this, it's clear that among the surplus of spirits not one of them appears to be willing to go near the watering hole. Upon begging Ichimaru to let me up on his shoulders, I manage to see _why._

It's frozen.

The water has been iced thoroughly.

There's a few spirits at the spring setting up long metal torches around it.

"Matsumoto, Ichimaru?" I say, nudging Ichimaru to let me off of his shoulders.

He sets me down. "Ya, Hina?"

"The spring is frozen over," I declare. "Do either of you two know why?"

"Probably to make some sort of stage for the Nobles when they arrive." Rangiku responds.

I nod. My eyes skip over the crowd again. There's dozens of spirits, more than I have ever seen at any festival or gathering before. Most of these spirits look unfamiliar, smelling of incense and spices not from our region. I figure these spirits must have traveled a long way to get here, all to witness Lord Hyourinmaru's arrival and the revealing of his guardian. While I'm scanning the crowd, I catch sight of a gorgeous purple song-bird resting on a tree across the spring, "...Tobiume..."

"Hina?" My mind is too distracted to answer Ichimaru. He reaches out and pokes my cheek.

I snap back to focus and shake my head, turning to look at him and Rangiku. "Sorry! I just saw Tobiume and," I bite my lip, "I should probably go back to her, before the event starts."

Rangiku nods and the teenager reaches up to brush a stray hand from her face, "It's okay, right Gin?" She elbows the white-haired boy in the side.

"Y-Ya, ya," Ichimaru exclaims quickly. "We understan', Hinamori, why don' we all choose a place to meet up after? We can all go an' relax with our spirits! Provided they're all okay an' stuff with it!"

"That sounds great," I beam at both of my friends. "Want to meet at the top of Tobiume's tree? Your spirits can scale it, right?"

"Hey! Don't doubt Haineko! She's no pushover! And neither is Shinso!" Matsumoto yelps. The ginger puts her hands on her hips and huffs in my direction.

A cry escapes my lips. "Hey, hey, hey, I'm sorry! I just meant that as a joke! I didn't-!"

My words trip over themselves as giggles and laughter wells up in Rangiku. The ginger guardian doubles over for a moment and both Ichimaru and I stare at her. When Matsumoto is done, the teenager straightens up and wipes away a tear from her eye.

"I got you good! So good!" Rangiku declares. Her face is flushed with glee.

Gin can't help it; he chuckles and beams at Rangiku. The boy catches himself a moment later and pouts. "Ne, Ran, shoul' ya be teasin' Hinamori like tha'?"

"It's okay, Ichimaru," I smile. "It was a good prank. I'll see you two later!"

For a moment my arms wrap around Ichimaru and Rangiku, caging them in a hug. Then I run off into the crowd. It's a lot more full than I first thought and trying to navigate around the other guardians and their spirits becomes more and more difficult. I end up trapped in one place for awhile, the spirits around me refusing to budge. It's a waste of time, the sky has turned dark and I'm nowhere close to getting to Tobiume. More and more spirits keep coming. At this rate it will be completely packed and I will be trapped in a group of guardians and spirits, unable to move until afterward.

Irritated, I manage to crawl and weave my way out of the crowd. With a pause, I halt on the edge of the forest to catch my breath. It's been tiring trying to get out of the crowd and I'm scolding myself on the inside for leaving my friends. With no way to get back to them, much less to Tobiume, there's nothing left to do but lean against a tree and think.

Staying on the ground throughout the ceremony is not an option. As a guardian who has yet to finish puberty, I'm still a bit on the short side and nowhere close to the height I would need to be in order to overlook the spirits blocking my view. Not to mention there's also the risk of being trampled as night descends and some of the larger spirits are unable to make out smaller forms such as myself. With a scowl, I turn and kick the tree near me in frustration. A spasm of pain runs up my side as I cry and clutch my foot, hopping up and down.

_Dumb idea, dumb idea, dumb idea... _I look up at the tree above me and pause.

It's covered in branches. The bark is rough but the leaves are very slim, and droop downwards in single lines - save for the scarcer top. There's no visible guardians or spirits preoccupied within its branches, and it looks easy enough to climb...

A thought crosses my mind.

"If I get up there I won't have to worry about being squished. I might even be able to find a way to attract Tobiume's attention, she can come and pick me up." A smile dawns on my face.

I get to work. Climbing up this tree had looked easy but by no means was that true. The branches were larger than I had anticipated, and the bark gradually became smoother the farther I went up. It takes a long time to work around the trunk, my body moving farther and farther up through the tree.

With a few grunts and one splinter, I make it to a decent height the branches are thin enough for me to hold unto, but thick enough to sit comfortably on. It has a great view of the watering hole.

My friends are nowhere to be seen. A small number of spirits have shifted to stand on the ice. I can tell from their posture, attentive and proud, they are guards. Surprisingly, Tobiume has also moved to the ice. I give myself another mental scolding, she's a _Noble_, of course she would be there! In attempt to ignore the dumb feeling that's sprung up in my head, I peer at the rest of the spirits near her.

One of them is a peacock, with golden feathers and a folded tail. It isn't moving, and my brow scrunches up as I attempt to recognize it to no avail. I move on to the next spirit. Without meaning to my jaw drops and I gasp as I see a tall woman, not quite human yet not quite animal, standing among the rest. She's stunning. _Gorgeous._ She has dark brown skin and long black hair held back in clips. The woman is wearing a golden robe thrown over a white undershirt, tied with a red sash, and a long, flowing brown skirt to finish the look. I can't help but feel respect when I look at her.

"...I wonder who she is..." I whisper.

What happens next makes me jump.

"You've never seen Lady Estwin of the West Wind before?"

I topple backward at the sudden voice and lose my balance. A hand reaches out and grabs my arm, pulling me back unto the branch. I squeak and the hand retracts, but not before my eyes catch sight and follow it to its owner: a young boy, sitting no more than a few feet from me, on one of the branches.

My eyes stare at him. "When did you..."

"Get here? I've been here for hours. Down below is so noisy." The boy huffs.

The words in my throat are choking. I can't get them out, too lost in my gaze. From nearby I can hear the boy ask if I'm paying attention, but I'm too busy staring at his eyes to notice. His eyes are the most beautiful shade of turquoise I've ever seen in my life.


	3. Turquoise Eyes

**AN: Hope you guys are liking the story so far. If you notice an error please feel free to point it out so I can correct it. :) Thanks! **

I've seen a lot of eyes before. Guardians typically inherit them from their spirit. If you're affiliated with the sky, you will generally see a lot of cooler-colored eyes hanging around in blue, purple, and green. If your spirit is associated with the earth then you see warmer tones of red, orange, yellow, and brown. There are instances where the element of your spirit determines your eye color, but that's rare.

Turquoise is one of those rare colors.

It's a fine mixture of blue and green, with a small dash of mint thrown in to lighten the shade. I've never seen it on an earth spirit before. Not even those whose spirits partake in the leaves have the fortune of turquoise eyes. The only time I have ever seen turquoise eyes was in a guardian from the far, north-eastern mountains. That particular case was seven years ago, and rumor has it that the guardian passed away since then, leaving the world without a set of turquoise eyes.

_Up until now. _I gulp and look away. Heat rises to my cheek, those eyes are awfully mesmerizing.

"What?" The boy speaks up loudly. When I glance back at him, he glares at me.

He doesn't look like the kind of guardian who would be grumpy. His skin is a very light shade of brown, and from what I can deduce he's either waiting for a long-lost growth spurt or he's a few years younger than me. The boy's hair is a mess. It's greasy, falling into spikes that badly need to be washed. and I can tell that it's supposed to be a brilliant shade of white when taken care of. I can't help myself. I stare at the boy until his snappy voice brings me back to focus. "You were staring. Why?"

Without intending to, I jump. "Um, nothing, I just... uh..."

He crosses his arms. "Spit it out."

"I-I think your eyes look really pretty!" I blurt, clamping a hand over my mouth._  
_

For a moment the boy is quiet. I sneak a peek at his face to see his expression flicker from shock to indifference.

"I doubt that."

"What," I repeat. "What? No! It's true," My tongue takes over and I'm left helpless as a ramble spills from my lips. "It's really true! I rarely see such pretty eyes! Not ones like that! A lot of the guardians here have gold eyes, you know? Or red eyes, or brown, or even bright green! And I know that the water spirit guardians tend to have blue and purple eyes, and the ice spirit guardians tend to have gray or white eyes, but... just... never turquoise...!"

I don't get a response.

Nervously, I look down and bite my lip. "I'm sorry. I just thought they were... you know... neat... They're the most beautiful eyes I've seen in a long time and I wanted to stare at them all night. Sorry..."

I almost miss seeing the boy's eyes grow wide, and the faint red tinge that surfaces on his cheeks. He's quiet. "...Hitsugaya."

"What?"

"Toshiro Hitsugaya. It's my name," The white-haired boy's voice is condescending. He stares indignantly at me. "Aren't you going to give me yours?"

I trip over my words. "Oh, r-right! I'm Momo Hinamori!"

Toshiro shifts in his seat. He peers at me and I can't help stare at his precious turquoise eyes again._ Eyes should not be this distracting.  
_

"You're the Guardian of the Noble Tobiume, right? The spirit of flying plum trees," Toshiro's voice cuts through my thoughts. "Isn't the forest named after her?"

I snap back to reality, nodding. "The _Forest of Tobiume_... I guess you could say that... I mean, she's kind of the unofficial leader for the earth spirits here, so they just began calling the forest the _'Forest of Tobiume.'_"

"You don't sound fond of the name." Toshiro remarks.

"It's complicated." I say, fidgeting. _Between being upset that nobody remembers she's a Noble and irritated that I feel pressured to treat her like a Noble compared to treating her like my own spirit... Oh, yes, Hinamori, you're just so wonderful in how conflicted you are! Why can't you make up your mind? _I sigh at the last sentiment. The topic is a shaky one, discussing it tends to leave me feeling uncomfortable. _Some guardian you are. _

A hand rests on my shoulder. I flinch, turning to see that Toshiro has a strange look of sympathy etched across his face. His eyes are dim and his frown is completely different than the one from before. I can't help but stare at him, waiting for him to say something. He doesn't. He lets go after a moment and turns away. My gaze doesn't waver, neither does my confusion.

"You..." I mumble. Trying to figure out this boy makes my head hurt. Biting my lip, I let the subject drop.

My eyes flicker back in the direction of the watering hole. The sight hasn't changed, saved for the increase in spirits, but a few more guards have arrived. It does nothing but bore me. After a moment I blink and turn back to my companion only to find him looking at me. Toshiro freezes, turns in the other direction, and my brow furrows as I try to get a grasp on the matter.

I'm beginning to regret climbing this tree. I should have picked one without a guardian like him.

"What's your spirit," I decide to switch the subject. "You have white hair, so it's ice, right? Or something like ice? Something affiliated with the skies, Shiro?"

"That's a secret- _S-Shiro?_" The boy sputters and his jaw clenches.

"I'm really bad at memorizing long names. You don't mind if I give you a nickname, right?" Admittedly, the 'Shiro' was a slip of the tongue. But he doesn't need to know that.

"..." Toshiro mumbles something under his breath.

I frown. "What?"

"...it's a stupid nickname," The boy grits his teeth. "I don't like it."

The trees nearby begin to look awfully tempting as I mark down 'rude' for Toshiro as well, filing away the mental note next to 'confusing' and 'strange.' We stay quiet for awhile. I'm too annoyed at the boy to speak up and he's... well, who knows what's going through his mind. I try to avoid looking in his direction but I find myself glaring at him as time goes on. He must have noticed this at some point. The boy turns and locks eyes with me; the two of us stare for a moment before I bite my lip and look away. _It's hard to stay mad at those darn eyes._

I put my feelings aside. My brown eyes focus on the watering hole before us. "Why did you come up here?"

Toshiro snorts, "What do you think?"

"You're avoiding the question."

"Maybe that's for a reason."

I cross my arms. "What's the reason?"

The boy moves. He pretends to seal an imaginary lock over his lips and throw away the 'key'. "Not telling."

Part of my brain tells me that I won't get anywhere with him if I keep arguing like a child. The other part doesn't care. For the sake of _trying _to get along with him, I decide to put aside his obnoxious behavior.

"If you won't talk then I'll go first," with one hand outstretched, I point to Tobiume. "That's my spirit. I came here with some friends, but I wanted to try and get to her before this event started. I underestimated the number of spirits that would be here and how hard it would be to get through them. By the time I had separated from my friends, it was too late. I decided being up here in this tree would be better than staying on the ground by myself."

"That's your fault. You should have known better with these kinds of crowds." The boy replies.

"Well, it's not my fault, I mean I don't usually have these kinds of crowds to worry about-!"

"Still your fault." Toshiro glances at me.

"W-What?"

"It's. Your. Fault. Any smart guardian would know not to run off like that."

"That's it," I glare back at him. He gives me a strange look but I'm too busy clenching my fists and gritting my teeth to care. "I'm done! I'm through trying to talk to you! You might have really nice eyes that I like to stare at but you can't budge on a simple question! You can't even be polite for five seconds! I don't even know how your spirit puts up with you, unless they're as horrible as you are!" I don't give him the pleasure of looking at him when my little rant is finished. Instead, I turn and stare at the ground below, covered in spirits. _Serves him right. _

Much to my surprise, I hear a dejected and thin voice speak whisper a moment later, "I came here to hide."

"What?"

"To hide!" Toshiro repeats himself. He huffs.

I peer at him from the corner of my eyes. The male guardian looks irritated. One could go so far as to say he's annoyed. _At who? Himself? Me? Probably me, right? _I shove the notion aside; there's better questions to ask. "Hiding? Why are you hiding?"

Toshiro bites down on his lip. I see him hesitate.

"Say it already." My voice imitates his own, haughty tone from earlier.

"It sounds dumb, okay? Don't laugh," the boy grits his teeth. "I climbed up here to hide. I wanted to... to get away from the other spirits and guardians."

He sounds convincing but I'm still left with questions. "Why?"

"I don't want to be the center of attention yet."

"Center of attention? Why would you-!" Our conversation is cut short as a crack emits above us.

Dark clouds roll in. Under the night sky, the moon is covered and a few spirits down below begin to set up lanterns that burn and glow a brilliant blue flame. The spirits who had been bustling and chatting among themselves settle down and the area grows quiet. It starts to snow; the event is about to begin.

To my right, I spy Toshiro shift uneasily. Without second thought I move and poke him; the boy looks over with his gorgeous turquoise eyes, "What was that for?"

"I'm not through asking you questions."

"What makes you think I plan to answer any of these?" Toshiro questions.

"Because," I mutter, "you got annoyed or irritated or _something_ when I yelled at you! You clearly don't want me to think _that _badly of you."

The look on his face confirms what I said. "Speak."

After a moment the white-haired boy sighs and looks away, "I'm nervous, okay? Tonight is supposed to be a big night for me." Toshiro heaves loudly and scratches his head. "I don't know how to handle this."

"Big night?" I say. Then it hits hard; a sack of realization drops on me and I nearly fall off the branch if not for Toshiro's hand shooting out and grabbing hold of me. Much to my detest my face heats up again. I bite down on the inside of my cheek until the feeling goes away. "Yea, thanks, Shiro," I mumble a few curt words of thanks. "This might come across as... blunt, but are you by chance this _incredible _guardian that's being revealed tonight? The guardian of Lord Hyourinmaru?"

"It took awhile for you to catch on." Toshiro stares at me. His eyes are cold for a moment, before he looks back toward the frozen spring. "I didn't think someone like you would notice."

"Is that why you've been acting so rude?" I can't help but feel a bit bad. Sure, the boy hasn't acted very pleasant, but at the same time there was a reason for it. I know if I ever had to be dolled up and presented onstage to hundreds, if not thousands of spirits then my mood wouldn't be bright and cheery either. Slowly my anger subsides and guilt replaces it as my brown eyes turn away and cast their gaze unto the spirits below. "That... That makes sense. Sort of. I think." I mumble.

"Yeah." Toshiro scowls.

"Have you met Hyo- um, Lord Hyourinmaru yet?"

"What do you think?" He runs a hand through his hair. "Yeah, I've met him! I don't like him! Him and all the other spirits treat me like I'm some sort of kid! I'm not a four year old, I don't need anyone else looking out for me, much less the _doting _attention they keep giving me...!" the boy rants for a good minute.

My mind blanks. "And you... you're telling this to a guardian you just met?"

Two turquoise eyes leer at me. "You asked."

"Y-You answered!" I exclaim.

"Maybe you're the only one who listens."

"What?"

Silence lingers over the two of us.

"You," his voice cuts through the tension with ease. "You've treated me differently. Pretty annoying, and you can't shut up, but that's more real than anything else I've seen since I was selected to be some Noble's guardian. And... maybe I don't like you _that _much, but..." A frown perches on his lips and he grumbles loudly. "Your company isn't horrible."_  
_

_Why is this boy so confusing?_

"I'm sorry." The words slip out of my mouth without second thought.

"What for?"

"I blew up on you! I'm sorry for that, I didn't even consider how you might be feeling!" I apologize. My lips twitch upward into a smile. "You know, if you want to be friends or... or just friendly tree-neighbors for the event, I wouldn't say no to that. I don't want to spend the whole night bickering."

Toshiro's eyes glint for a moment. He's wearing an odd expression, one I can't place. It crosses between vague shock and empathy. "That would be... nice."

"Nice?" My smile stays.

"That's all you're getting from me. Don't push your luck." The boy scowls, but this one is playful.

A flash of blue light envelops the Great Watering Hole. It staggers down from the sky in a ball and spreads slowly, the light dancing ad weaving its way through the air - much to the delight of the spirits and guardians below. My eyes grow wide and my jaw drops as the snow funnels downward into a vortex, spiraling and blanketing the area a thin layer of white. I can hear others cheering as the clouds part and a figure flies from the heavens. A long dragon covered in blue lands on the frozen watering hole. The snow calms at it's entrance and I can make out sharp, chunk-like scales covering it from head to toe. The dragon folds its wings and rests neatly on the ice, looking around with a pair of beady, emerald eyes.

My breath catches in my throat as I stare at the beautiful Noble before me.

Lord Hyourinmaru has arrived.


	4. Lord of the Frozen Skies

**AN: This story is a little over halfway done now. :)**

The spirits and guardians around us are quiet. All of them - like myself - are too busy taking in the sight of the Noble to talk.

Lady Estwin is the first to speak.

I watch as the brown-skinned woman strides over to Lord Hyourinmaru, smiling and greeting him with a, "Lord Hyourinmaru! It is an honor to see you again."

"Lady Estwin," Hyourinmaru lowers himself. He bows regally with all the grace of a great ice dragon and straightens up. His voice is calm, collected, and soothing to hear. "I should be the one giving you such words."

"With all due respect, Lord Hyourinmaru, that is nonsense. It is an honor and a privilege to have the Lord of the Frozen Skies reveal his guardian here. You are an honored guest, and shall be treated as such!" Estwin gestures around the plateau. I cringe as the spirits start to cheer in agreement. Luckily for my eardrums, the Noble holds up a finger and silences them shortly after. "As you know, this is the _Forest of Tobiume. _I am sure you want to greet her."

What happens next leaves my jaw hanging and my mouth sputtering out words, rambles, and trains of thought that halt halfway and crash into one another.

"Lord Hyourinmaru," Tobiume greets him. My spirit shifts and moves to Hyourinmaru's side; she ruffles her feathers. After a pause the song-bird cranes her head up. She nudges the icy dragon with her beak, to which he nuzzles her back eagerly. The two separate and Tobiume speaks softly, "...it is a privilege to have you here."

The teasing earlier from my friends and the way they had seemed so surprised at my lack of knowledge toward one noble adds up. Everything clicks into place and the puzzle forms one new image: two sides of a coin. Two halves to a whole.

My eyes are wide, staring without cause at the frozen watering hole. "...They're...!"

Lost in shock and a small bout of anger that my spirit wouldn't even _tell _me about her mate, I sway and tip off the branch. My balance drops to one side and I let out a small yelp before a cold hand snakes around my side and pulls me back up. With heat rising to my cheeks, I turn my head and spy a pair of turquoise eyes and a laughing grin to accompany them.

"What's that? The second or third time? For the guardian of Tobiume you tend to fall out of trees a lot." Toshiro's brow is crinkled in mirth, his eyes bright at the irony of the moment.

My voice trips over itself in my flustered state. "I-I was just shocked!"

"You really didn't know?" Toshiro's gaze shifts. He throws on one neutral expression, stature slack and his lips curling down into a frown. "Lady Tobiume and Hyourinmaru have been mates for a long, long, long... a _really_ long time."

While my mouth opens to speak my voice crawls to a halt as I look down, momentarily distracted. The heat on my cheeks rises at the realization that Toshiro's arm is still wrapped around me, drawing me to his side and keeping me sitting firmly on the branch next to him. I blink and follow the contour of his arm, my eyes trailing up from his shoulder to his neck, from his neck to his face, and settling on his eyes. He's staring at me, one eyebrow raised, but I'm too fixated on two cooling, blue-green eyes to pay attention. _So beautiful..._

"Hinamori?" His voice snaps me out of the trance.

I fidget and point an accusing finger at him, "Your arm! Around me!"

His eyes flicker off my form and the boy grits his teeth. "To keep you from falling. I thought that was obvious. I guess not- ow!" he jumps and moves back, rubbing the spot on his arm where I pinched him.

"I don't need you to hold me! I know how to stay on these branches." With a huff my attention settles on the Nobles and the Watering Hole before us. The recent memory of Toshiro and I agreeing not to fight during the event surfaces, but it's shoved into the crevices of my mind as a different thought returns, "...Why didn't she ever tell me?"

"What?"

"About Lord Hyourinmaru. Tobiume never spoke of him. She never mentioned she had a mate." I cringe at the way my voice comes out, sullen and unnerved.

Toshiro doesn't seem to notice. _Not visibly, _my mind adds.

"I wasn't told until recently. Maybe Hyourinmaru and Lady Tobiume are the kind of mates who don't see each other much," the boy states. "Both of them are Nobles. They have duties and matters to attend to. Maybe they don't bring the subject up because they're always busy, too busy to think about things like that. I bet it isn't intentional."

_Are you trying to make me feel better? _Part of my brain aches to ask that but before the words can escape there is a cheer from the guardians and spirits below. I squint and look over them all, my gaze ending on the frozen watering hole and the mixture of Nobles and guards atop it. During the idle chatter I had forgotten that we were supposed to be paying attention to the 'stage' and Nobles. _Oh, well. They probably said something important and I missed it. Nothing huge._

"Quiet!" Lady Estwin's shrill voice rings out. The crowd silences immediately.

Hyourinmaru bows his head. "I have something I wish to mention, Lady Estwin."

"You are free to speak as you please." The Noble's words are sincere and genuine.

A strange feeling bubbles in the pit of my stomach. I cannot help but bite my lip and fight back the distaste and ominous weight growing in my chest. With a shudder I listen to Lord Hyourinmaru's next words, "...I was informed of a concern before attending this event. After careful deliberation I thought it would be best to share such news with you. There is a," the great dragon pauses. "...a _ghoul_ lurking these woods. Several members of my guard reported the same sighting when we first entered the forest. While I am certain the spirits here are more than capable of handling a small entity, I wished to inform the lesser spirits and the guardians who accompany them of the matter."

A ghoul? A _ghoul? _Shivers run up and down my spine. They deepen and my hands clench while my eyes stare ahead. I am not one to admit it, but the very thought of encountering such a malicious being is enough to give me nightmares. From the time Tobiume has warned me of them in the past, I recount how they are made up of negative properties, always rampant and looking for more energy and souls to fuel themselves with. Such a hunger cannot be quenched until they grow large enough to turn into devils, or until they are struck down by one of the spirits or guardians. While most lack sentience, they still possess multiple abilities and are capable of defeating multiple spirits in a fight.

_A fight I could never win, _I grimace at the thought and pray to the Spirits of Origin that I never cross paths with one.

"Oi, you okay?" Despite my startled cry from the voice, I manage to avoid falling off the branch. My head swivels to glance at Toshiro. He stares at me with a frown plastered on his lips. "You look like you're in some kind of daze."

I blink and nod. "Yeah, yeah, sorry... I'm just not fond of the idea that a ghoul could be in the region...!"

"Calm down. A lot of the guardians here look incompetent but the spirits are strong. Hyourinmaru told me that," Toshiro's voice is no more than a low murmer. Ironically, I find myself straining to hear him compared to listening in on the Nobles. "I bet this 'ghoul' will be found and killed before it hurts anyone. It wouldn't surprise me if there were guards out looking for it now."

_He really is comforting me._ My body relaxes, relieving itself of tension. I shoot the boy a small smile. "Thanks."

For a moment I watch his cheeks darken a shade as the boy mumbles a curt, _'don't mention it,'_ and turns away.

When my focus reverts back to the Nobles, Lord Hyourinmaru is in the middle of a speech. I marvel at the way the spirit handles a crowd, his voice smooth and confident, as he thanks those who are attending. His eloquent manner enrapture us all and his words are fluid but easily understood. Without a doubt you can tell that he is serious, sincere, and full of gratitude to have the region for an audience. The mere mention of such a thing leaves me with a small bud of pride on the inside, blossoming into a staggering grin full of happiness.

Hyourinmaru halts halfway and looks around, "Your attendance to this revealing is honorable."

"Gah, here we go..." Toshiro groans under his breath.

I frown. "You still don't want to go up there?"

"I didn't say I was hiding for no reason. I _really_ don't want to do this."

An absurd thought crosses my mind, "Well... you could..." _No, no, it's stupid. Don't suggest that._

"What?"

I squeak. "Err, nothing! It's nothing!"

"Spit it out already, before my spirit decides to hunt me down and drag me onstage." Toshiro's voice is impatient. He crosses his arms and two turquoise eyes bear into me.

"I was just going to, you know, offer to come with you... That way you wouldn't be alone. A-And I know it's dumb, but Tobiume is there too, right? I should probably be there anyways."

Lady Estwin steps up to the plate before I can get a response. She moves to the front of the frozen watering hole; her skirt trails behind her. The golden peacock she brought along moves to her side, cooing softly as the Noble smiles and addresses the crowd, "I trust that after this revealing you will not harass nor stalk Lord Hyourinmaru's guardian. Such behavior is condemned and punishment will be carried out the moment I am made aware of such action." the woman turns, her voice never wavering in its intensity. "Now. Lord Hyourinmaru. Proceed."

"I hope you were serious," Toshiro says. He stands and grabs hold of the surrounding branches to keep his balance. I blink as he extends a hand and stares at me. "You were serious, weren't you? About coming with me?"

"Well, yeah, but-!" _Note to self: think things through next time. _With a soft mumble of _'okay'_ I begrudgingly haul myself up. My balance isn't terrible now that I'm on both my feet; I can feel the bark under my hands as I rest my palms against the trunk of the tree. It's soothing.

"As you have noticed, my guardian is not with us." Lord Hyourinmaru draws our attention back to his icy form. My eyes fixate on him, looking at the Noble keenly and tensing at his words."We arrived here earlier today and while we were traveling he was separated. I have reason to believe he is among you now."

The spirits and guardians below visibly move and swing their heads around to look at each other. Part of it amuses me to know that the very human they are trying to find is standing next to me on a branch.

"I should say something." Toshiro heaves a sigh. "Here goes nothing." I watch as he lifts two fingers to his lips and whistles. The sharp noise draws the attention of everyone else; they turn and stare at the tree. "Hyourinmaru!"

Instinctively my face flushes. Why did I think it was a good idea to volunteer for this?

Hyourinmaru jumps into the air. The spirit's movements are fluid and graceful as it soars. The others on the ground let out a low cry of awe while Toshiro and I look at each other.

"Here he comes," Toshiro comments, his voice sour.

The dragon stops near us, flapping his wings in the air to stay upright. I notice some smaller details right away - the cracks within his scales, the glossiness of his eyes, the small 'whiskers' near his snout, and the way the first toe of his hind-feet are slightly larger than the rest...

"You first, just to make sure its safe." The words slip out carelessly.

I spy Toshiro giving me a strange look. Mentally, I hear a stern voice in my head imitate him, growling, _'It? What do you mean It?'_ Without further ado the boy shifts off the branch and hops unto his spirit, throwing a leg over the great dragon's back and holding unto his neck. I hesitate, staring down at the ground below, before leaping off the branchn. As I swing my legs over and settle down I can't help but notice Lord Hyourinmaru's scales are freezing. My thin clothes do nothing to stop the shivers that crash over me, and without meaning to I throw my arms around the nearest source of warmth.

Toshiro tenses under my grasp. "Oi!"

"Y-Your spirit is c-cold!" Without budging I bury my head into his shoulder.

"That doesn't mean you can grab unto me...!" the boy complains loudly.

I refuse to move. "Y-You did earlier, m-maybe t-this is payback!"

"You two are making a scene," the cold voice is orderly and shuts the two of us up in a moment.

Hyourinmaru lands back on the ice. The spirits around us have grown quiet and I feel heat rising back to my cheeks as I look away and stare at the frozen watering hole beneath our feet.

A bird caws to my side and a tail plucks me off of Hyourinmaru's back. I squeal and fidget before following the limb back to its owner - a beautiful, purple song-bird that is giving me one hefty gaze. _Tobiume. _I bite down on my lip and give her a shaky smile. _It's not like I ran off. I mean, I was with Ichimaru and Matsumoto before I separated and climbed the tree. That doesn't count, right? Right. _With that reassuring thought I relax and fall forward unto my spirits back. Her soft feathers tickle me and I smile, running a hand through them.

Tobiume turns to look at Hyourinmaru and Estwin. The spirit bows her head and I feel her shuffling back to the side as she proclaims, "Forgive me, Spirit of the West Wind, Lord of the Frozen Skies, for the interruption."

"Your apology is accepted." Lady Estwin waves off the ordeal and the attention shifts to Hyourinmaru.

"Now that matters have settled I would like to introduce you to my Guardian - Toshiro Hitsugaya," the spirit allows Toshiro to climb off and the guardian puts on a big, fake smile. "He will be my companion for many years to come..." Hyourinmaru cuts into a long speech.

It's far more boring than I had anticipated, but watching Toshiro provides minimal entertainment. The boy is clearly uncomfortable with the way everyone stares at him. Some of the guardians in the audience - male and female alike - are fawning over his looks, and the boy attempting to ignore them with every possible fiber in his soul. He shifts and flinches in his spot, but every now and then the boy glances at me and I can spy one expression clearly shining through his eyes, _help me.__  
_

He's ready to snap and hurl a flurry of insults by the time Hyourinmaru finishes. The crowd of spirits erupts in a wave of cheers and excited cries, clapping and throwing their hands, paws, and wings high.

A wind blows past us. I frown and look over at Toshiro. He mouths, _is it coming from the west? _and I nod.

The crowd grows silent.

"Thank you for attending this." Estwin reaches back and touches her hair. The Noble pulls her skirt back and performs a subtle mix of curtsy and bow before looking around. "Your loyalty and endeavors toward the Nobles will not be forgotten."

As the event ends some of the guards clear a small path through the spirits and guardians to help herd the crowd through. I coax Tobiume into letting me off her back; the two of us walk to Hyourinmaru and I can't resist giving Toshiro a teasing grin.

"You looked horrified." I remark.

The boy huffs at me and crosses his arms. "I _was _horrified. I still am."

"It wasn't so bad. Your spirit seems a lot less... _doting _than you made him out to be," My hand gestures toward Hyourinmaru. "Maybe you were overreacting."

The two of us grow quiet in time to catch a few words between our spirits. Looking over, I spy Tobiume staring at Hyourinmaru intently as the latter nuzzles the crook of her neck.

"When are you leaving?" Tobiume breathes softly.

The icy dragon pulls back and looks into her eyes. "I have agreed to meet with several leaders of smaller clans scattered in the region. I will be here another day, minimum."

The noise Tobiume makes fills me with a small rush of glee. She sounds unbelievably _happy _when she chirps and smiles at her mate. Any negative thoughts I had toward the notion of the two being mates melts within the moment.

Without warning a thought springs into my head. I gasp, jump, and throw my hands up into the air, "Matsumoto! Ichimaru! I'm supposed to meet them after this is over!"

When I catch Toshiro staring, my jaw opens and I gape at him. How could I have forgotten to tell the boy who they were? "They're my friends, Shiro! My other friends," I walk up to him and clasp one of his hands. "Do you want to come meet them? I bet our spirits will be too busy for us, talking to Lady Estwin or the lesser spirits, or something...!"

Toshiro's face turns red. "...That sounds boring. And let go!"

"Glad it's settled. Tobiume! I'm going back to my tree with Toshiro! I'll meet you there later!" Before my song-bird has a chance to discuss the matter further, I've taken Toshiro and bolted.


	5. Running in Circles

**AN: I finished this chapter earlier than usual, I'm working on getting it done and completed within the next two weeks as I have an idea for a different fic I would like to get started on. :)**

"What do you think you're doing?" Is the first thing I hear.

"Showing you my friends!" I declare.

I pull Toshiro through the crowd, grateful that the guards have cleared a path to herd us through. My eyes skip across the numerous spirits and guardians, looking over groups of them for two particular humans. A nagging voice in my head tells me over and over to go to my spirit's tree, to the place we agreed to meet at, but my insides are twisting with impatience and I badly want to introduce Toshiro to Matsumoto and Ichimaru. The very thought of how they will react and greet him brings a smile to my face, full of mischief.

Toshiro flinches in my grip, "Can't you slow down?"

"What?" I come to a halt and turn, "The guardian of Lord Hyourinmaru can't handle a little running?"

"I never said that. I just... don't want to fall and sprain my ankle." the boy replies coolly.

With a roll of eyes my gaze flickers forward. I bite my lip, pulling Toshiro off to the side. The parade of spirits we were navigating through marches on. I sigh and wring my hair in frustration. "Ergh, maybe we should go to the tree..."

"The tree?"

I whine. "I said I would meet them at Tobiume's tree, the one her and I stay at... But I really want to see them before then. It would be more fun to walk back together-!"

"Hinamori!" A loud yell catches my attention and I spin around in time to be crushed by a large set of arms and curly orange hair. "I didn't think we would see you until later!"

I blank for a moment before realizing - by a stroke of luck - Matsumoto is hugging me. With a squeak my face darkens and I choke, "A-Air! Air!" I spit out, stuttering. The girl gasps and drops me back unto the ground with a loud cry.

"Ne, Ran, ya shoul' know betta' before tryin' to crush 'er!" Rubbing my neck, I turn my head and spy Ichimaru walking up to us.

Matsumoto is at my side, helping me up, while I give the two a shaky smile. "Ichimaru! Matsumoto! I was looking for you two!"

"I thought you wanted us to meet by the tree, but then I saw you standing here and I thought to myself, _'why not go surprise Hinamori?' _So I spoke to Gin and while he was having trouble agreeing I decided that it would be less hassle to drag him here than to wait for an answer!" The ginger winks at me. "I was right, right? Completely right, this was a great idea! Now we can all go back to your tree together, and..." she trails off and Matsumoto's eyes skip past me to the white-haired boy by my side. "Hinamori, why is Lord Hyourinmaru's guardian with you?"

"Him? Oh, that's a funny story actually. Well it isn't very funny and it isn't much of a story but-!"

"We're tree-buddies," Toshiro cuts in before I can finish my sentence. "You must be her... friends."

"_Best _friends, shorty!" Matsumoto huffs. She puts a hand on her hip and stares at him, putting on a perfect act that I recognize as her '_pretending to be offended' _display. "We've known Hinamori here for years! Years! If we're not best by now then I don't know what best is!"

"Raaaaaaan, I don' think tha' is what he mean'..." Ichimaru yelps as Rangiku elbows him in the side.

My grin must be ear-splitting at this point. I look back at Toshiro and wave at my friends, "This is Rangiku Matsumoto, and Gin Ichimaru."

"You mentioned their names earlier." Toshiro replies, disinterested. He looks away.

Matsumoto groans. "Hinamori, why couldn't you be tree-buddies with someone else? Someone_ fun!_ He's not even responding to me calling him _short__!_"

"I'm big where it counts, unlike some people." Toshiro makes it blatantly obvious he's staring at Matsumoto's chest, face bored and blank.

She hisses and bonks him on the head. "Take that back! _Take it back!_"

"Ne... Hina?" I turn to spy Ichimaru's blue eyes peering at me. He's frowning, lips parted and head tilted. "Shoul' we stop 'er? Will Lor' Hyourinmaru get mad at us if she beats up his guardian?"

"Apparently he and Tobiume are mates so I can_ probably _convince her to talk him out of anything if there's a problem. Probably." I nod.

Ichimaru's eyes light up. He grins. "Ya figure' it out! Took ya long enough!"

"What? About them being mates?" I whack him and scowl. "You could have told me that! I had to figure that out on my own! It's a real shock to learn your spirit has some long-lost mate whose a really high-ranking Noble!"

He chuckles to himself and rubs the back of his head. "Ne, sorry Hina, Ran an' I thought it woul' be more interestin' if ya figured it out on yer own..." The guardian is interrupted by a yelp.

Ichimaru turns and I follow his gaze, looking over to spy Toshiro wriggling in Matsumoto's grasp. She's lifted him off the ground and is angrily rubbing his head, shouting nonsense about him needing to appreciate 'woman like her' more. _  
_

"We shoul' prob' pull Ran-han there off, Hina," Ichimaru comments, glancing at me.

I bite my lip and nod. "It was fun to watch while it lasted."

"Ne! Ran! Shorty-boy!" Ichimaru strides over and I follow. With a little effort the two of us are able to pull one very upset ginger off of Toshiro. "Ya can' kill 'em here! Wait until we get to Hina's tree!"

"If she's going to be there I don't want to go." Toshiro grunts. His turquoise eyes glare at Matsumoto before turning back to me, "I don't like your friends. They're strange."

"An' proud of it." Ichimaru chimes in.

I bite my lip and think. Granted Toshiro is annoying and rude and gifted with the most beautiful eyes on the planet, but he's still a friend. My friend. I've come to accept that he's one, and even if the boy doesn't think likewise it would be less fun if he leaves now. Maybe he and Matsumoto haven't gotten off to a great start but that's no reason to decide that they can't become almost-friends like we are! The night has just begun! I don't want it to be ruined because of bad first impressions.

With the tension in the air growing between the four of us and Matsumoto looking ready to pounce on Toshiro again with every passing second, I decide to blurt out the first idea that comes to mind, "Why don't we race?"

"Race?" The three around me repeat.

I nod. "To my- err, Tobiume's tree. We can split up into teams for it."

"Tha' soun' like it coul' be fun, Hina," I smile at Ichimaru. He grins in response. "Anythin' to beat Ran again."

Matsumoto pouts. "Beat me? Last I checked, Gin, Haineko and I came in first!"

The air around us begins to feel breathable again as the two exchange a few playful taunts to one another. I relax and heave a silent sigh of relief.

"We can split into teams. Matsumoto with me," she gives me a thumbs up and I grin at her. "and Ichimaru with Shiro!"

"Ne, ne, Hina, _Shiro?_" Ichimaru questions. Matsumoto snickers. Toshiro stares at me with a look that would kill baby spirits anywhere.

My cheeks flush and I cross my arms, avoiding the latter, "Coming from the master of nicknames, Ichimaru, you aren't allowed to make fun of it."

He throws his hands up in defense, "Aaa, Hina, I didn' mean it like that!"

"Come on, Hinamori, we should get a heads start while the boys are busy feeling bad." Matsumoto grabs hold of my arm and drags me away, leaning down and whispering into my ear. "Girls got to win this, right? Right."

I can vaguely hear Toshiro telling Gin how he never agreed to participating before Matsumoto leads me through the parade of spirits and off into the forest on the side. Any tense bone in her body relaxes as we move farther away from the sight. The trees grow and surround us with large, thick trunks and branches scattered around them. Gradually the chatter of the parade and the sounds from it are silenced. We venture deeper and deeper into the forest, working to move quickly. With the forest itself memorized like the back of our hands it's easy to recount the quickest route to the tree.

Matsumoto grins and clasps her hands together. "We'll beat them, won't we? Bragging rights are ours for sure!"

"Yeah," I nod. "Ichimaru won't live this down for at_ least_ a week." I glance at the trees around us and note the familiar ones, gesturing and leading Matsumoto to the right.

We chat little while walking. I can hear the ginger mumble and ramble under her breath, of 'Shorty' and how she plans to get back at him, of the ways she'll hide from Lord Hyourinmaru and avoid 'capture,' of how Ichimaru is 'going down,' and of a number of different schemes that revolve pranking myself and others. I chime in and add a comment here and there, but silence is my overall company as I shuffle my feet and keep up at a brisk pace. While I'm leading, Matsumoto follows on my tail. I keep track of the trees, counting them and sorting out familiar branches and markings across the trunks to decipher where we are.

It becomes obvious that the path I've chosen is taking far longer to get to Tobiume's tree than usual. A nagging thought burns in the back of my mind that we've gotten lost, yet I frown and acknowledge that _can't_ be the case as I look over and identify the trees nearby and the exact spot in the forest they belong to.

_Wait, _the thought spurs into my mind,_ That tree... It looks... Familiar?_

My eyes grow wide and I stop walking to whirl and stare at one of the trees. It's dark brown, with a few cross-hatch markings carved into it from when a spirit or form of wildlife used it as a scratching post. One of the branches is bent and has grown out that way, disfigured and noticeable compared to the rest of the bland tree limbs. I pause, hesitantly take a step, then two, then three, and reach out to run a finger over the thick bark. It scratches my hand lightly and I draw back, my eyes boring into the trunk and scanning it up and down to confirm my thoughts.

"Matsumoto," I turn. "This is going to sound strange, but please don't freak out."

The ginger peers at me, "Hinamori?"

"I... I think," my hands flail to emphasize what I'm saying, "I think we're going in circles."

"In circles? Wait, do you mean we're lost?" Rangiku weaves a hand through her hair and shuffles over. She puts a hand on her hip and tilts her head, gray eyes looking across my face for an answer.

"Not lost, no," I shake my head. "I wouldn't say lost. We're... we're walking around in a circle. We're still in the forest but we're not getting any closer to the tree, no matter how much we walk."

I flinch as Matsumoto complains quietly to the side. Leaning against one of the trees, I look from her to the canopy of leaves above and question if climbing up and leaping from branch to branch would help. With a sigh I grit my teeth and reject the notion; the trees may be clustered close enough to allow for easy travel, but there's much fewer markings on the top halves compared to the base area around their trunks. There would be no way to properly navigate up in the branches, not even for someone who has grown up leaping through the forest, such as myself.

Minutes tick by and neither of us have moved. I think about it some more, trying to trace over our steps in my mind and sort this out. Much to my avail it does nothing but give me a pounding headache and bring back the nagging voice that whispers, _'Lost... lost... lost...' _over and over. Vaguely, I recount Hyourinmaru telling us of a ghoul in the forest, but I dismiss the notion. There's not way a ghoul could be involved in leading us in circles, right?

_No, of course not. _My train of thought ends there. I feel a ping of guilt in my side a I reconsider the matter. _If I had kept my mouth shut and let the four of us walk back with the parade..._

"Maybe this was a bad idea." I mutter quietly. "We should have just stuck with the other spirits and guardians. We wouldn't have split up and wound up in this predicament if it hadn't been for my whole 'race' idea..."

I jump as a hand touches my shoulder. Matsmoto's soft voice fills my ears. "Don't worry about it. It's not like we're out in the wastelands or plains."

"It was still my idea," My gaze bears into the ground. "I just," The words spill out on their own, "I didn't want you and Shiro to be fighting. I mean, I know he's rude and he needs to apologize for his remarks, but that doesn't mean the rest of the night has to be spent squabbling. I just I want all of us to be friends."

"Or tree-buddies?" Matsumoto offers.

I wince, "I'm being serious! _Rangiku!_"

The teenager sighs and throws her hands up, "Sorry, sorry, Hinamori! But, you know, I was just playing! I didn't think he would take it so seriously. I don't genuinely dislike the kid. He's a little ball full of clouded sunshine just waiting to be poked at." She gives me a small grin, one I barely notice as my eyes dart backto look at her. "Hey, how about this? When we get back to the tree I'll apologize for pinning and 'yelling' at him. I'll even call him by his name instead of 'shorty.' So don't feel bad, alright? I'll make sure this all works out in the end." She moves her hand to her forehead and 'salutes' me.

With a sigh, my shoulders slump and I look away. "I'm sorry, Matsumoto. I'm wound up right now, a real mess."

"Then we just have to fix you up, right? Just remember: everything will be okay. Your best friend, Rangiku Matsumoto, is here to ensure that happens!" The ginger declares.

My lips twitch and one end curls into a light smile. I nod. "Alright. I believe you. When we get to the tree and see the others we can sort this out."

"_Beat _the others! No way are those boys winning!" Matsumoto huffs. She grabs hold of my wrist and drags me off again.

We've taken two steps before I burst out into giggles, "Do you know where we're going?"

"You aren't the only one who knows these woods." Matsumoto winks. Her eyes are bright as she leads the rest of the way.

Despite our moods being lightened and matters resolve, we don't make it to the tree. The two of us have been striding for five minutes before we pass the same, cross-hatch-marked trunk. While I notice, there's no time left for us to dawdle on the matter as an ear-piercing scream fills the air. Matsumoto and I jump, me grabbing hold of her arm and I turn and look in the direction it came from - off to the side, closer to the edge of the forest.

Neither of us want to admit it was there, that it happened. The two of us stand idly, my grip on the ginger never wavering as I sway and my mind races through a million thoughts.

_That scream... _The voice in my head begins to shout.

"...Matsumoto?" I squeak, shivering and refusing to let go of her sleeve.

_It sounded like... _I don't want to admit it.

Her voice is equally shaky. "Y-Yes?"

The words leave my mouth before I have a chance to shut up and reconsider.

"That sounded like Ichimaru."


	6. Clouding Your Mind

**AN: I had a lot of fun with this chapter. :) Hope you enjoy!**

I would be lying if I said I wasn't scared.

I don't want to admit I heard the scream. I don't want to acknowledge it, acknowledge the voice, and acknowledge the frightening reality that one of my friends is hurt in the forest. I can't speak for Matsumoto, but from the way her jaw clenches and her eyes stare as if in a daze it's easy to tell her feelings border close to mine.

_Ichimaru. It sounded like Ichimaru. _I think again, biting back the choked cry that threatens to burst from my throat.

The only time I have ever heard Ichimaru scream was years ago, when the three of us were children. It had been a rainy day and the three of us - without our spirits - were traversing one of the rivers in the region. The weather had been particularly bad but Rangiku had convinced us that was okay, that it would make the adventure more fun. We wound up leaping from rock to rock on the river's shore, ignoring how foul the clouds looked and the rocks that were slick with rain. That's when Rangiku fell in. The girl was gone within a moment, swallowed by the rapids, and in that very second I heard Ichimaru scream for the first time. _Calling her name... _

We found Rangiku washed up on a small outcropping a few miles down. Ichimaru refused to leave her side until she recovered. Since that day, I have never heard him scream - not until now.

Shakily, I tug on Matsumoto's sleeve. She flinches and we lock gazes, silently conversing the same question to one another, _Is it really Ichimaru? _

The answer is obvious. _Of course it is. Nobody screams like that besides Ichimaru. _

But out of terror?

_Screams aren't always out of terror, but pain._ I remind myself.

"Matsumoto," With a whisper, I try to regain control over my erratic breathing. "W-we need to... you know... to..."

Gray eyes stare at me. She squeaks. "...y-yeah..."

I manage a nod. "L-Let's go... b-besides, w-we can always find the... the parade, again, right? I-If anything has... you know..." _If something has happened to Ichimaru._

We stumble through the dark, our guard thrown up and paranoia kicking in. It leaves us fidgeting and jumping at every tree root. The forest is a lot more ominous than usual; the shadows of trees crawl across the floor and the crickets heave sharp cries that spread goosebumps over my skin. My mind races as we slowly inch toward the source of the scream, each step harder than the last and my feet becoming heavier and heavier to pick and drag along.

I'm scared.

A voice in my head repeats a word over and over, but I refuse to acknowledge it. _Not yet. _

By the time the second scream comes I've convinced myself that the first may not have actually happened. Then it comes, loud, screeching, and accompanied by pained yells that leave me shaking and whimpering. Matsumoto is the quiet one, her eyes wide and sweat dripping off her face as she freezes and her knuckles go white from clenched fists.

"H-Hinamori... We need to... to... h-hurry..." she whispers. I gulp.

Our pace changes from a cowardly one to a maniacal half-bot. We're dragging one when the other slows down and our breathing comes in short and shallow pants. I fight off panic while Matsumoto leads for a time, my mind lost in a wave of thoughts that crash into me over and over.

The second scream wasn't Ichimaru, not even close. The yells weren't Ichimaru - Ichimaru would never yell like _that_. Bitterly, I want to reject the whole notion. I want to avoid the matter and pretend that I don't know who the other person in pain was. I want to go back to believing this is a race, that I don't know _what _is the cause for this, and that everything is going to end happily - just like Matsumoto said.

We stumble into a clearing a few minutes later. There's no such thing in the forest - I know that much - yet it's there: a wide, open piece of land with tree-roots visible on the surface and light flickering in through the canopy above. I gasp and look down as my feet come into contact with something wet. Peering closely, I can spy dark stains across the floor and my eyes widen in horror as I realize what I've just stepped in. _Blood. So much blood. This is... this is human blood...! _

My stomach hurls. I keel over and release its contents while Matsumoto gags from the metallic smell.

"H-Hinamori...!" Matsumoto breathes.

"Y-Yeah?" I whisper, wiping my mouth. "Matsumoto-!" she grabs me, dragging me off to the side, clamping a hand over my mouth. I shake and flail, trying to pry off her hand before she jabs me in the side and points to the clearing.

There's a figure standing there, hunched over and silhouetted against the night's light. It's vaguely humanoid, but it's limbs are elongated to the point where the knees must bend from the height. From a distance it's impossible to make out any detail or more intricate features, but from the shapes along the end of its arms and legs I can tell that it has four hands.

_Ghoul, ghoul, ghoul, ghoul, ghoul. _The voice in my head mirrors the sight.

A ghoul.

It should have been obvious - _it was obvious_ - but my head hurts too much for a scolding. I let out a ragged breath as I feel Matsumoto's hand release me, the girl realizing that I've caught sight of the danger at hand.

"W-What are we going t-to do? There's a ghoul there," I whisper.

"Hinamori... Momo, look," Matsumoto breathes and points, "Look!"

My eyes follow her finger and I realize that the ghoul is stalking one of the larger trees. The trunk is slick and shiny from something wet, drops of the liquid staining it dark and dripping down from above. As I look higher I recognize an uncanny figure sitting in one of the branches, breathing heavily with another figure slumped against their side. A cloud rolls off the moon and a ray of light filters through the leaves, shining off the figure's head and revealing a mat of silver-hair, stained red.

_Ichimaru is in the tree. And he's... _"He's hurt." I think the last part aloud.

"Shorty's there with him," Matsumoto murmers. We watch the ghoul circle the tree again, snarling incessantly. "Gin is injured, Hinamori. And if Shorty isn't yapping then he's probably hurt too! We have to do something!" The last part isn't a suggestion but a muffled, desperate order. Rangiku's voice is pleading for me to come up with a plan.

"B-But... but... it's a _ghoul_, Matsumoto," I shiver again and let out a squeak when the ghoul moves back, lunges, and leaps up part of the trunk before it loses its gripping and falls back to the ground. "W-We aren't a m-match for it!"

"There has to be something we can do, anything, _Hinamori!_"

"Rangiku,I'm not even fully trained in properly using Tobiume's energy! And even if you are... Rangiku... Tobiume isn't here, Haineko isn't here, nobody here can give us energy, to help us! We're nothing but amateur guardians against a _ghoul!_" Panic rises in my voice.

Matsumoto stares at me. "But... but Hinamori..."

Fear clouds my mind.

I stare back at her, "What are we going to do? Run and spook it a little? Ichimaru's had more practice than _all _of us combined and _he _couldn't defeat it! You saw the blood, Matsumoto! You saw it on the ground, on the trees, the branches, _his _hair! He's injured! That ought to tell you how well we'll fare if we try to fight! It would be easier to- to just turn around and find the parade! Let's get one of the guards to come, and...!"

"We can't _abandon_ them!" I hear the ginger exclaim, her words grind me to a halt. "Hinamori... Hinamori, look at me," Matsumoto's hands are gripping unto the collar of my upper robes and her eyes begin to water. "Please, Hinamori... We have to do something. The ghoul's energy and effect on the area isn't gone yet, we'll run around in circles for hours before we find the parade, or the guards, and... and... we both know what will happen to _them _during that time! That ghoul will find a way up that tree and... and...!" Tears glisten and slide down our cheek as she begs, "_Please! _We can't leave them here! I can't leave _him_ here!" _Him_ is said with such distinction and worry and fear that my stomach churns and I feel guilt cut through my insides.

_What am I? Selfish? Yes. Selfish. To even think I was trying to make excuses, to escape, to run away, to leave Ichimaru and Toshiro here to be hunted down and eaten by a ghoul... what kind of a person am I? _I bite down on my lip. A cowardly person, at that. I don't deserve the title of Tobiume's guardian. I don't deserve to be a guardian at all. I let my own fears of ghouls get the better of me, and... _and I almost ran away. I almost left them behind, abandoned them to a grueling death, just to save myself._

Matsumoto is right. There has to be _something _we can do to help them.

Slowly, I nod. "...I- I'm sorry. You're right. They're our friends- _both of them - _and we can't leave them behind."

Matsumoto sniffles, "So you'll help?" She smiles through her tears and wipes them away.

"We- we came this way to find Ichimaru, and Shiro, because we were worried, right? I'm not going to back out of that now. ... Tell me what to do, and I'll do it. Or- or the other way around! I don't know if you have a plan, I mean, but if you do I'll follow any word you say! Or- or- or we can think up one, or..." I trail off, my voice shaking and face flustered.

For the first time in what feels like years I see a hint of amusement on my friends face.

My shoulders slump and I sigh, the sentimental moment gone. "Let's think of something to beat that ghoul."

"Hinamori," Matsumoto chimes in quietly. "I actually... I have an idea."

"Matsumoto?"

"I- I knew I couldn't pull it off if you were going to leave, but I think it's okay to say it now." the girl bites on her lip and hesitates, "It requires two people."

Slowly, I nod. My eyes drift back to the tree my friends are stuck in, and I shudder as I spot the ghoul ramming its trunk. Leaves fall from the upper branches and a gasp escapes my throat. _We should hurry... _

"Hinamori!" Matsumoto grabs me by the shoulders and shakes me. "I- I know, Hinamori, I know it's there and it's scary and threatening but ignore it and listen for a moment!"

"S-Sorry..." I lower my voice.

The ginger runs a hand through her hair. She turns and points down the side, where a particularly large, abnormal cluster of roots is visible. My eyes narrow as I look at it. The roots are thick, dense, and they spiral chaotically into a tube-like 'structure' that runs along the ground. It becomes progressively smaller the further you go in, and leads into the ground. As I stare it becomes clear that the tunnel of roots lead to an underground burrow, but only one that can fit in one or two people - provided they can squeeze into it.

It's a feeble idea. One with slim chance at success, but what other choice do we have?

"It's risky, I-I know that, but- but... but if you could distract it, Hinamori, I can get to Ichimaru and Shorty. The tunnel there should keep you safe. You can climb in the back where it can't reach you and keep it's attention focused there." Matsumoto explains quickly.

The ghoul is becoming more and more aggressive toward the tree. I shudder and jump as the ghoul throws itself once more to the trunk. It screeches and it's hands dig through the bark, blood drizzling down and nails being torn out as it falls and stumbles backwards.

Even if it takes ten or twenty minutes for the ghoul to climb up the tree, Ichimaru is still bleeding. Toshiro could be bleeding, and any passing second could mean the difference between life or death for the two of them.

"I'll do it." While my hands are shaking, my mind is made up. I give Matsumoto a stern frown, serious as one can be when confronted with a terrifying ghoul and panic wrecking their insides.

Matsumoto nods. "Alright. You need to keep it occupied for at least five minutes. I... I don't know how long it will take me to climb up the trees and sneak over to Ichimaru and Shiro, but plan for at least five, okay? If it takes longer..."

"I-I can improvise. Don't worry." I bite my lip, "Let's go."

I watch Matsumoto move to one of the trees nearby. She begins to pull herself up, and has made it a few branches when she turns and looks back, "I'll whistle when I'm ready, okay?" then she's gone, disappearing into the darkness.


	7. Something Awful

**AN: I have to say – working on this story has taught me a lot about pacing. I'm not satisfied with this chapter (and, similarly, I'm no longer satisfied with the story) but as much as I want to discontinue it it's too close to the end. I'm determined to finish it and put it behind me. This will be the last chapter before the epilogue. **

My stomach sloshes nervously. I feel butterflies flitting my sides and my fingers twitch. I creep to one of the tree trunks, hiding behind it. Hesitantly, I peer around the tree to get a better look at the ghoul.

With more of the night light coming in, I can make out some of its features. It's a human-wolf hybrid, twisted in ways that threaten to leave me doubled over and hurling my stomach. I gag on the taste of bile in my throat and force it back down, staring at the ghoul. The creature's hands, pasty white with dark hairs along the back, have six fingers and one thumb. The nails of each finger are badly chipped and splinters, grime, and dirt are present along the bloodied edges. It's torso and legs are thick with "fur" and a 'mane' of hair encroaches its neck. The ghoul's head is the worse by _far_; it is an atrocious combination of dog and man, with a dog's stiff snout, protruding teeth, and the man's eyes and lips sunk into the ghoul's face.

I choke and clamp a hand over my mouth to silence any noise.

_It looks like it's covered in blood. Ichimaru's blood? Shiro's blood? I saw Ichimaru, part of it must be his... but what about Shiro? What about the ghoul itself? Could it be injured? Even if Ichimaru couldn't defeat it, I'm certain he could nick it or maim it in some way! _My brow furrows and lips twinge as I think. _No, no. Don't think like that, Hinamori. You can't count on the ghoul being injured. If anything, you should expect it to be at full strength. Nothing less. Whatever you do, don't underestimate it.._

I try not to over-think the situation. _Stick to the plan. It will work. It has to work. _

By the time I glimpse Matsumoto, she's moved high into the trees. The only way I can catch sight of her is when the wind pushes through the branches, moving leaves aside and letting a few flecks of light dot her form. She's tense, one of her hands is shaking as she climbs to a branch's edge and looks down at me.

She whistles.

The ghoul reacts and spins around, snarling loudly. I freeze. For a moment I'm left there on the spot, watching the ghoul approach Matsumoto's tree and prepare to pounce. Then it begins. Adrenaline floods my system and I find myself moving faster, thinking less, and no longer possessing the capacity to question my actions.

I leap out into the clearing and shout at the ghoul. It turns, and I catch another glimpse of it. Ignoring the foam dropping from its mouth and it's beady eyes, I look around and swipe up two sticks. Aggressively, I hold them up and pound them together, shouting more incessant phrases until the ghoul's attention is entirely on me. When it charges, I gasp and sidestep it, throwing up my sticks in defense. It smashes through them and collides into a tree nearby, sending leaves falling down and leaving a dent in the trunk. My heart pounds wildly as the ghoul backs away, blood seeping through its fur and shining in what little light wafts through.

"Hinamori!" Matsumoto calls. I barely hear her over the ringing in my ears.

I let myself look up and spy her on a tree branch. She's moving them one at a time. Ichimaru is draped over her right shoulder, and Toshiro is a tree away – limp as a rag. Both look bad.

The moment of distraction is my mistake – the ghoul yells and charges, throwing itself forward. I have little time to move as fingers slice across my side - barely missing my internal organs, but leaving deep wounds on the lower half of my torso.

I scream and fall backwards, clutching my abdomen. Faintly, Matsumoto shouts in the distance. My vision clouds over. The ghoul's figure becomes too hard to make out, left a blurry form that staggers forward. I shake my head, bite my lip, and hiss at the pain in my body before pulling myself together and crawling up. I turn away, ignoring the ghoul to find the tunnel of roots on the ground.

My eyes spot it. For a moment, the thought that I might actually survive crosses my mind. Then it's squashed - my body is pushed back as a jaw bites on my shoulder and I scream. The ghoul bites down with a sickening _crunch_ before a force kicks it back.

I pant, blood now falling down my shoulder and torso, and with a horrified expression I spy Matsumoto standing there. She's visibly frightened, tense, and trembling as the ghoul rears back and begins to circle us.

"Hinamori, oh my Spirits, just hang in there," Matsumoto shouts.

She holds out her hand. A thin sword appears in it, summoned at the guardian's wishes.

"But... but..." my voice trails off and I look around, confused, "Ichimaru... Shiro..."

"I left their bodies in the branches! Do- don't worry, they'll be fine!" Matsumoto, despite her best attempts to be comforting, does nothing to discard my underlying feeling of fear.

_No... no, no, no... _Hazily, my thoughts begin to drift as I watch the ghoul charge and see Matsumoto parry it's blow at the last second - drawing it off to the side. _She can't... can't... she can't... win... Ichimaru couldn't... She can't..._

The whole situation has turned upside down. _I _was supposed to be the one distracting, not Matsumoto! Now not only have I been injured but Ichimaru and Toshiro are still in the trees, their wounds not tended to. I don't want to think about the possibility that one of their injuries has reopened from the movement. I need to do something, and quick - before the ghoul decides to give up on Matsumoto and come back for me, or worse.

With another hiss I push myself back up. My right arm is useless, bleeding vividly against my white clothing. As quickly as I possibly can, I tear apart my sleeve and wrap it around the wound. It does nothing to help the pain but at the very least maybe I can get the bleeding to stop or slow down.

The injuries to my sides are not as deep as I first thought. They are longer in length though, and sting when I try to move. I rip off part of my pants leggings and quickly wrap my abdomen, using the clothe belt I have on me to secure the bandages in place. When I'm satisfied that I've done all I can, I look up. Ichimaru is resting in a crook of branches, against a trunk. Toshiro is where I last saw him, body slump and limp in another tree. Neither are moving, but they appear to be safe – for now.

I force myself up and hobble to one of the trunks. Scaling trees with one arm is a lot tougher than with two, but certainly feasible. Climbing the tree, I make it to the top and pull myself unto the branches, where Ichimaru lingers. Gently, to the best of my ability, I try and maneuver his body unto my back. It takes a moment but I descend – slowly, trying not to open the wounds on our bodies more than they need to. Despite my efforts, I can feel the blood drip from both our bodies and hear it hit the forest floor.

I get him to the ground and manage to find the tunnel of roots, pulling him in behind me. The way our bodies press against one another make it difficult to get deeper but I manage, reaching the beginning of the burrow where the tunnel hits the ground and depositing Ichimaru there. It takes a few minutes, but I succeed in moving Toshiro to the same place.

Toshiro has sustained several bites to his leg. It's crudely wrapped up, but still bleeding. By the looks of it Toshiro will need a soak in the Great Watering Hole for it to heal. The rest of his body is covered in smaller cuts, and a bad wound to his head, but nothing else. Ichimaru's condition is much worse. Where Toshiro only has one or two nasty wounds, Ishimaru is covered in them. I shake my head.

Tobiume's powers are not used for healing. The few things she's taught me are for self-defense – and even then, my grasp on them is slim and little to none. I grit my teeth. The only thing I can do in this situation is cauterize the deeper wounds and pray for the best.

I grab hold of Toshiro and remove the bandages around his leg. The best I can muster is a small flame on my fingers, holding the flickering fire up to the bites and gritting my teeth.

I yell as a hand grabs my arm, "What are you... you... doing...?"

"Healing you," I say, looking at Toshiro. His eyes look heavy, like he's struggling to stay awake.

Toshiro begins to protest but I ignore him. _No pain, no gain, right?_ I force the fire into his leg, prompting Toshiro to yell and cry out. As the tissue and muscle burn, the bleeding stops, and Toshiro passes out. In contrast, Ichimaru is a quiet case. The boy doesn't stir as I tend to his wounds, wrapping them in coarse sleeve-bandages afterward. Once satisfied I've done all I can, I leave to find Matsumoto.

* * *

The forest is still being affected by the ghoul's energy. I can feel it under my feet as I burst into another clearing that shouldn't exist and stumble forward.

Finding Matsumoto wasn't difficult. You could trace the markings and indents in the tree that indicated a fight took place. I count myself lucky – she _left _some sort of trace to begin with so I would be able to track her.

Well, maybe not me. Maybe she didn't know she was being tracked, but I'm grateful nonetheless.

My eyes spy her across the clearing – breathing short, frantic, and eyes wide. She looks exhausted. Sweat is rolling down her forehead and her hands tremble as she raises her Guardian sword and charges. The ghoul stands a few feet away, hobbled over and barely injured. It throws itself into the impact, ignoring the blood that spurts out of its arm as sword meets bone and the weak swing is halted in mid-air.

My injuries throb as I leap into the fray – running, and shouting, "Matsumoto!"

"Hinamori-!" the teenager cries before the ghoul strikes her down. I hear leaves and sticks crack and crunch from her body hitting the floor.

It's a mistake, all of it – leaping into a fight I can't win, trying to use my _measly _powers to fend off an entity far more powerful than anything I can imagine-

I shiver and stop, scrambling back, avoiding a strike and cursing loudly as my wounds trickle with fresh blood. The ghoul is relentless, clawing after me, attempting to advance and grab hold, but I don't let it – not now, _not now, not now… _The words repeat in my head, willing another flame into existence and watching it singe the ghoul's fur coat. It screams but does not back down.

Pathetic.

I'm pathetic, aren't I?

The guardian of Lady Tobiume, Lady of the Forest, Spirit of the Flying Plum Tree – nothing but _pathetic_.

I can't even help my friends. No wonder I was so keen on leaving the forest earlier, all in the name of 'help' – my powers are weak, I have little to no grasp on them, and I have as much courage as a wind that flees at first opportunity.

_"Hinamori." _The name creeps into my mind as I fall back, pushed farther and farther away, the ghoul slicing and stabbing at me with its elongated fingers.

Matsumoto's voice, I realize.

She's not dead. Injured – but not dead.

A cry rips from my throat as the ghoul makes contact with my side, clipping me and grabbing hold. It's hands lunge and break into my chest – fingers forcing themselves deeper, blood dropping off as I heave and choke and struggle for air.

_Maybe I am pathetic, _I think, looking at the ghoul – staring at it's deformed snout, aimless eyes. _Maybe I am weak. But Matsumoto- _I wince, a hand raised and clutching the ghoul's arm. It's fur feels prickly to the touch. _Matsumoto is not weak. Matsumoto can fight. If Matsumoto can fight against someone like this, something far more powerful than herself, for the sake of others… _My vision clouds and I wheeze, _So can I._

I think back to Tobiume, to her purple plumage and soft feathers. I think to the beautiful Lady Estwin, Spirit of the West Wind, and Hyourinmaru – Lord of the Frozen Skies. I think of Haineko, the ashen cat, and Shinso – the silver serpent, and the guardians that accompany them. Matsumoto, Ichimaru, Toshiro… all of them would be upset if I died – if they even lived through this. Tobiume would grieve. Matsumoto would wall herself up, and Ichimaru with her. What would become of their Spirits? Struggling to deal with humans in mourn – humans who _shouldn't _be in mourn, not yet.

_And Toshiro… _He's young, much like me. But we're friends, aren't we? _He would miss me too. Hyourinmaru would be left to not only take care of him, but also Tobiume._

I can't let that happen – not for my sake, but _theirs_.

Unconsciousness borders the edge of my mind.

I feel the ghoul move its hands.

And – just like that, holding unto my last breath – I think of fire. I breathe flames.

The ghoul screams and drops me, fire dancing across its body. I collapse, knees buckling and sending my body sprawled against the floor. My eyes slide shut.

The last thing I hear before passing out are the screams of something dying, mixed in with a wind blowing from the west.


End file.
